1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to headgear. More specifically, it relates to headgear wherein the brim or sunshade portion of the hat is not connected directly to the front portion of the hat proximate the user's forehead, but is only attached at the sides of the hat, i.e. proximate the user's ears. This shading portion of the hat is angled to provide both protection from the sun and to prevent the cap or hat from being dislodged by the wind.
2. Description of the Prior Art
One of the primary disadvantages of current hats or caps is their tendency to be blown off during periods of high wind. The brim of the hat, or the portion designed to protect the user's eyes and forehead from the wind, creates a lifting surface that tends to lift the hat off the head. One of the comic standards of the silent film era is that of the hatless man chasing the errant item of apparel down the street during a windstorm, coming tantalizingly close before nature again blows the hat out of reach.
A common solution to this problem, especially in the case of women's headgear is the hatpin, that attaches the item to the user's hair. In the case of a man's shorter hair, or hair that is not sufficiently thick or piled up on the head, this will not work. Bands or cords that are tied or are elastically connected under the user's chin have also been used to address the problem, as in the case of many "cowboy hats".
The present invention presents a novel solution to this problem, as it shields the eyes and forehead of the user from the sun, but this novel visor or brim is generally planar and a space is left between the body of the cap and the bill/visor The leading and trailing edges of the brim are set at such an angle as to exert force on the cap in a downward direction; i.e. to press the cap more firmly onto the user's head. The angle is set between 25.degree. and 65.degree., with the optimum angle being 45.degree..
During a search at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, a number of relevant patents were uncovered and they will be discussed below.
First is U.S. Pat. No. 2,874,387 issued to Constance Bannister et al. on Feb. 24, 1959 discloses a visor cap in which a plurality of slats or panels is provided to redirect the flow of air, thus preventing the cap from being blown off by the pressure of the wind. Unlike the present invention, there is no teaching of the brim being substantially completely detached from the front portion of the cap body, creating a large single space or passage to direct the airflow.
Next is U.S. Pat. No. 5,487,191 issued to Robert L. Ridley on Jan. 30, 1996. This discloses a vented visor cap that is unlike the present invention in that the bill or brim of the Ridley cap is clearly attached to the body of the cap itself proximate the front thereof.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,778,454 issued on Jul. 14, 1998 to Scott E. Oxman there is disclosed a visor cap having a cross-section that, from the front end to the rear end, resembles an inverted airfoil. This, like the Ridley patent above, is dissimilar from the present invention in that there is no teaching of the bill or visor being attached only at the sides of the body of the cap as is seen in the instant invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,898,935 issued to Michael B. Davis on May 4, 1999 discloses a cap having an adjustable and interchangeable visor. The novel construction of the visor or brim seen in the instant invention is not seen in this patent.
Lastly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,943,704 issued on Aug. 1, 1999 to Scott E. Oxman, being a divisional case of the '454 patent, above discloses a visor cap. This is an attachment to a visor cap that is itself an airfoil in cross-section. As in all the other patents discussed here, this also does not teach the unique structure of applicant's brim, which is located such that an air space is created between the brim and the cap body.
Thus, while the foregoing overview of prior art indicates it to be well known to modify or shape visor bills or brims to allow air to flow through them, or to be deflected via an airfoil to prevent the hat from being blown off in a high wind, none of the inventions discussed above, either alone or in combination, describe the instant invention as claimed.